Feeling crafty

Coffee-themed crafts to perk up your day

June 2, 2011

You can make a morning cup of java even more enjoyable for yourself or the coffee lover in your life by adding simple, personal touches to favorite cups, containers and bags of beans.

Instead of a pricey trip to the paint-your-own pottery studio, use porcelain or glass paints and markers to decorate mugs, then pop them in your kitchen oven to make your creation last. Stencils from your local crafts store can help make attractive patterns and pictures.

Or add embellishment by attaching wine charms to the handle of a special mug, says Becky Hermann, a craft specialist with Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores. You can make your own charms in any color or style by using wire and beads, ribbons, or even a tag with scrapbooking stickers and stamps. Just remove them for washing.

Article Photos

AP Photo - - This photo shows a handmade felt coffee collar made by Adrienne Weeks of Des Moines, Iowa. One of the easiest and most eco-friendly projects for yourself or a friend who makes regular trips to the coffee shop is a reusable coffee collar or sleeve.

The charms can work especially well for brushed stainless steel travel mugs to which paint doesn't adhere easily. Permanent markers and rub-on applique stickers can be applied to the outside of the mug for additional interest. Some crafters suggest coating those in clear nail polish for longer use. Remember to wash gently.

Many photo shops will print pictures of friends, family and pets onto a mug or stainless steel commuter cup; then you can add artistic touches at home.

Dress up your cup

There are plenty of other ways to dress up your morning cuppa and accompanying products as well.

Consider creating colorful wraps or coffee coats to keep your pot of java and French press piping hot, or your blender of iced coffee freezing cold. Most any fabric will do double duty, keeping the heat or cold inside.

Hermann suggests fun fabrics such as Insul-Bright, the insulating fabric you can use to make oven mitts and pot holders. Or use lined cotton and Velcro for an easy, inexpensive cover.

Make a template using your own pot, press or blender, or find one online or in sewing magazines.

For friends who enjoy grinding their own beans, decorate a small, vinyl place mat to catch the grounds that escape the grinder.

Or use printable food or scrapbooking labels to design custom labels to attach to reusable plastic containers that keep bags of beans and grounds fresh. If you use a single-cup coffee maker, decorate a container or make an organizer for coffee pods.

One of the easiest and most eco-friendly projects for yourself or a friend who makes regular trips to the coffee shop is a coffee collar or sleeve. That's the small piece of cardboard that many coffee stores offer to protect your hands from the heat and make your cup more portable. Your version can be a little more colorful, comfortable and reusable.

On her blog, the Iowa Farmer's Wife, Adrienne Weeks details how to make an adorable and inexpensive coffee collar:

Materials

1 large rectangle of felt in the color of your choice

1 small piece in a second color of your choice

1 or 2 colors of embroidery floss

1 button

1 small piece of ribbon

Scissors

Embroidery needles

Use your coffee lover's favorite to-go cup as a template

Instructions

1. Cut your preferred shape a star, cross, heart, bird, anything you like from the small piece of felt and set aside.

2. Using a cardboard coffee sleeve from a coffee store, trace a template on the larger piece of felt. Or measure a to-go cup in two spots about 3 inches apart where you would place your hand, draw the lines on the felt at the same distance apart and connect the sides. Weeks suggests doubling up on your felt pieces for extra insulation.